《歷世真仙體道通鑑》Vol. 32

Comprehensive Mirror of Perfected Immortals throughout the Ages, Volume 31

Zhongli Quan

The Perfected One’s surname was Zhongli and his given name was Quan. He later changed his given name to Jue. His courtesy name was Jidao, and he was also known as Master Hegu, Master Zhengyang, and Mr. Yunfang. He was from Yantai. Another account says he was from Xianyang in the Jingzhao region. Tradition says his great-grandfather was named Pu, his grandfather Shoudao, and his father Yuan; all were well-known figures of the Han dynasty. His father was enfeoffed as a marquis and served in the government of Yunzhong.

When Zhongli Quan was born, a strange light several zhang high appeared inside the house, blazing like fire and startling the attendants. He was extraordinary in appearance from birth: his head was round, his forehead broad, his ears thick, and his shoulders long; his eye sockets were deep, his nose high-bridged, his mouth square, and his cheeks full. His complexion was ruddy. His arms were so long that, when hanging down, they nearly reached the ground like those of a three-year-old child. He neither cried nor ate, day or night. On the seventh day, he suddenly leapt up and spoke: “My body has already wandered in the Purple Mansion, and my name is entered in the Jade Capital.” His voice rang like a bell, and he walked as swiftly as a galloping horse, outpacing all the other young children.

Another account says that in his youth he studied literature and later served as an official in the Han dynasty, rising to the post of Admonition Grandee. After submitting a memorial discussing Li Jian’s frontier affairs, he was banished to Jiangnan. After the Han dynasty fell, he lived through the Wei and Jin dynasties in succession.

As an adult, Zhongli Quan served as a general under the Jin dynasty and led troops on campaign against the Tubo forces in the northwest. As the two armies engaged, thunder and lightning suddenly erupted, followed by fierce winds and torrential rain. The sky darkened, and neither side could see the other; both armies broke apart without fighting. Another account says this happened after Emperor Wu of Jin ordered him and the deputy general Zhou Chu to campaign, and their forces suffered defeat.

Zhongli Quan fled alone on horseback into a mountain valley and lost his way. At night, he pressed deeper into the woods and secluded streams, hoping to save his life. There he encountered a foreign monk with unkempt hair covering his forehead, dressed in garments woven from grass. The monk led him several li to a village and said, “This is where Master Donghua attained the Dao. General, you may rest here.” Then he bowed and took his leave.

Another account says that he met a monk and asked him for directions but received no answer. The monk merely pointed toward a temple to the southeast. At the temple gate, Zhongli Quan saw two Daoist adepts dressed in blue and asked what place this was. They replied, “This is the residence of the Sovereign Lord Shaoyang of the Purple Mansion.”

Zhongli Quan did not wish to disturb the people in the village, so he waited a long while. Suddenly, he heard someone say, “That blue-eyed foreign monk is far too talkative, disturbing the village’s peace.” An old man wearing a white deerskin robe and holding a green-wood staff strode out, calling loudly, “Could the visitor be the great general Zhongli Quan?”

The man replied, “Yes.” The old man asked again, “Why didn’t you stay at the temple on the mountain?”

Hearing this, Lü Shaoxian was deeply astonished. He thought this must be an extraordinary person. By then, he had put aside his former fierceness and developed a resolve to seek the Dao. Without realizing it, he turned toward the Dao and earnestly asked the old man to show him how to transcend the world. The old man then taught him the secrets of longevity, red talismans and jade registers (Daoist Fulu, talismans and registers), golden rules and numinous texts (Daoist scriptures and precepts), the fire timing of the Golden Elixir (the methods for controlling the firing during alchemical refinement), and the Green Dragon sword method. He urged him to practice diligently.

The Perfected Lü took his leave and went out. When he looked back, the manor had vanished. From then on, he grasped the wondrous principle. Another account says that, knowing he had long possessed the bones of an immortal, he freed himself from worldly entanglements in the hope of attaining the immortal Dao. First he met the High Immortal Wang Xuanfu and received the secrets of longevity. Later, he met the Perfected Huayang and learned methods such as the Taiyi knife and cinnabar, and fire talismans for Neidan (internal alchemy), gaining a profound understanding of the wondrous Dao.

Another account says that, long ago, the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan obtained the secrets of the Golden Elixir and hid them in a jade casket in Hanging Bell Cave on Mount Zijin, east of Shouchun County. After receiving teachings from his master, the Perfected Lü traveled widely and came to the land of Lu. He settled in Zoucheng, entered Mount Kongtong, and lived on the Four Elders Peak of Mount Zijin. There he met an immortal, who led him into a cave, where he received the secrets from the jade casket. His virtue and inner cultivation thus reached perfection, and he ultimately attained the wondrous Dao.

The Record of the Quanzhen Tradition says that the Perfected Lü was born on the fifteenth day of the fourth month during the Han dynasty and ascended to Heaven on the twentieth day of the fifth month during the Jin dynasty, but gives no specific years.

Later, Lü Shaoxian, a jinshi degree holder of the Tang dynasty, repeatedly failed the examinations. He gave up the civil service examinations and traveled freely across the land. First, on Mount Lu, he met the Perfected Fire Dragon and learned swordsmanship. Later, on the road to Chang’an, he encountered a Perfected One. The Perfected One wrote a poem on a wall:

“Whether sitting or lying down, I always keep a pot of wine nearby;

I will not let my eyes gaze upon the eastern capital.

In the world between Heaven and Earth, I have neither name nor surname;

I am a free and unrestrained man among humankind.”

Lü Shaoxian bowed twice to the Perfected One. The Perfected One asked him to write a poem expressing his aspirations. Lü Shaoxian wrote:

“Born into a Confucian family in a time of peace,

I wear the scholar’s cap and sash, yet worldly clothes weigh lightly on me.

Who would contend for fame and profit in this world?

I serve the Jade Emperor and return to the Upper Clarity realm.”

The Perfected One was delighted and said, “I live in a cave on Crane-Crest Peak of Mount Zhongnan. There is a chamber there where you may stay.” The Perfected One used his supernatural powers, and in an instant they were at the cave entrance on the mountain peak. Clouds of rosy light swirled before the entrance, where three tigers crouched on guard. The Perfected One ordered them to withdraw, and they retreated to the far side of a deep ravine. He then offered Lü Shaoxian Yuanhe wine, and the two sat on a rock discussing the abstruse principles. Before long…

A young attendant from the azure realm arrived with a letter from Mount Penglai, saying that the immortals were gathering for a feast and inviting the Master to join them. The Perfected One went to the Celestial Lake and discussed the roaming of the spirit with the Five Origins Perfected Ones. Before leaving, he said to Shaoxian, “Since you have come here, follow me in cultivating the Dao. From now on, your name will be Yan, and your courtesy name Dongbin. I must leave now. Simply cast off the weariness of the mortal world and purify your immortal bones; I shall return before long.” The Perfected One then set three tigers to guard the entrance. He mounted a white crane, rose gradually, and flew southeast, vanishing among the distant clouds.

Yan brought back the books from the cave that the Perfected One had given him and studied them carefully morning and evening. The next day, the Perfected One returned and asked, “Do you want to go back?” Yan replied, “My attachments to the mortal world have been severed, and my worldly body and mind have been purified. Fortunate to follow the Perfected One and seek the wondrous Great Dao, how could I again become entangled in mortal concerns?”

The Perfected One said, “Good. You who cultivate only the Yin spirit know that the Yin soul exists, but do not know that there is also a Yang soul. People in the world do not understand the difference that emerges when Yin and Yang separate. If you can preserve Yang Qi, gather the soul that wanders in the underworld, and unite it with the Yin soul, so that Yin and Yang blend and soul and spirit become one, you can become a Perfected One.” Yan asked, “How can the body be preserved through this most profound teaching?” The Perfected One replied, “Wisdom emerges in deep stillness, while the spirit rests in a state of calm serenity. Once the spirit has been blended into unity, how could it fail to accord with the true Dao? A body of gold and a substance like jade are formed through sincere cultivation. Once the Great Medicine has been refined, the body becomes light and can ascend.”

That night, the Perfected One transmitted the Supreme Mystery’s essential instructions to Yan. Before long, someone knocked at the door. It was Zheng Siyuan of Qingxi and the Perfected One Shi of Taihua. They came from the southeast, walking slowly through the air, their bodies radiant with golden and emerald light. The three exchanged greetings and sat together. A little later, they went to the place where Yin Siyi refined elixirs and entered the immortal gate.

The Perfected One Shi asked, “Who is this attendant?” The Perfected One replied, “He is the son of Lü Haizhou Rang. He originally studied Confucian and Mohist teachings, but his pursuit of office in the capital did not go well. Later, he happened to meet me in a wine shop in Chang’an and followed me in cultivating the Dao. He understands the transformations of Yin and Yang, and knows how to refine and nourish body and spirit and enter the mysterious realm.”

Yan bowed to the two immortals. Perfected One Zheng saw that his form was clear and radiant, his spirit held inward, and his gaze bright. He said, “If you wish to escape the bonds of the mortal world, compose a poem for me to see.” He handed Yan a golden writing tube, rosy-cloud paper, and a spirit-glue inkstone made of rhinoceros horn. Yan at once presented this poem:

“Through ten thousand kalpas and a thousand lives, at last I gained this life;

Only after life upon life of cultivation did my body begin to grow light.

I cast off the ties of home and state and entered the clouds and mountains;

I refined and nourished the Yin soul, preserved the Yang soul, and made them pure as sun and moon.

Once I heard people speak of the methods of the Nine Tripods,

And I too wished to seek the Great Medicine and visit the immortal realms of the Three Pure Ones.

Now at last I have been granted audience with the immortals.”

Zhongli Quan left his name at the gate of the Purple Mansion, the palace where immortals dwell. The three immortals looked at one another and marveled at his exceptional talent and graceful verses.

At that time, spring birds were singing. The Perfected One said to Yan, “You may inscribe this at the mouth of the cave: ‘Spring fills the sky; flower dew drips into the morning sun. Strike the seas and mountains; the clouds draw back.’”

He then said to Yan, “Before long, I must pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning. Immortal guests from the Ten Continents will arrive at the Jade Capital, the abode of the Celestial Emperor, and present a report on my merits and deeds, so that I may be admitted to the ranks of the immortals. I fear you cannot remain in this cave for long. In ten years, we shall meet again at Lake Dongting.” He took up a brush and wrote sixteen characters in cursive on the cave wall: “Day bright and high; night moon round and clear. Yin-Yang, hun and shen unite and rise.” When he had finished, he tossed down the brush and told Yan, “As you travel through the world, you should follow the Way of aiding the world and benefiting others. When our merits and deeds are complete, we shall meet again.”

Just then, several immortal maidens appeared, dressed in colorful gauze and carrying golden slips and sacred talismans. They said the Supreme Lord had summoned Zhongli Quan. He mounted a phoenix-dragon and departed amid golden banners, jade insignia, and ringing immortal music, which gradually faded into the distance. Yan was reluctant to part and could not put the moment from his mind for a long time. Later, he traveled through the Jianghuai region, Lake Dongting, Jinghu and E-Yue, as well as the two capitals of Bianjing and Luoyang. In the end, he perfected the Dao and ascended to immortality. Their mysterious exchanges were compiled by the immortal Shi Jianwu as the Zhong-Lü Collection on the Transmission of the Dao, which has been passed down to this day.

In the early Jingkang era of Emperor Qinzong of the Song, the court conferred on Zhongli Quan the title “Perfected One of Zhengyang.” In the first month of the sixth year of the Zhiyuan era under the Yuan, he was further honored as “True Lord of Zhengyang, Awakening to the Dao and Transmitting Its Teachings.”

Liu Gang

Liu Gang was from Xiapi during the Jin dynasty. He first lived on Mount Siming and later served as magistrate of Shangyu County. He became a disciple of Lord Bo, learned the Daoist arts, and took charge of affairs in the central region. After years of cultivation, he perfected the Dao. His story is recorded in the Supplementary Biographies of Immortals and has been passed down through the ages.

One day, Liu Gang invited his relatives and friends to gather and bid them farewell. After the banquet, he climbed a large soapberry tree beside the county office, more than ten zhang above the ground. He raised his hand to bid everyone farewell, then suddenly flew into the clouds and disappeared. His wife also perfected the Daoist arts and ascended to heaven with him.

Wang Lie

Wang Lie, whose courtesy name was Changxiu, was from Handan. He entered Mount Baodu in the Eastern Sea to cultivate, and once traveled with Ji Shuye. Wang Lie found a kind of stone marrow resembling malt sugar. He ate half himself and gave the other half to Ji Shuye. Later, the stone marrow Ji Shuye had received all hardened into stone.

Wang Lie later entered a stone chamber, where he found two scrolls of plain silk covered in writing. Unable to understand the characters, he did not dare take them away. He memorized the forms of more than ten characters, then returned and wrote them out for Ji Shuye to see. Ji Shuye understood them all…

Knowing what the character “Lie” meant, he went with Shuye and identified the path. Later, when they reached the place where the fallen stone lay, Lie said to his disciple, “Shuye has not yet attained the state of an immortal.”

Liu Daocheng

Liu Daocheng was from Xinwu in Yuzhang. He studied the teachings of Huangdi and Laozi, along with related Daoist methods of cultivation. During the Yongjia era under Emperor Huai of Jin, his knowledge of the classics led him to enter government service, and he eventually became governor of Chenzhou. He later returned to his native home, where he devoutly offered incense and worshipped the Great Luo True Talisman, a Daoist talismanic register.

Several decades later, the entire Liu family ascended to Heaven together in broad daylight. The Stele of Kaiye Abbey, written by Xu Xuan, says that on the fifteenth day of the eighth month in the second year of Yongjia, the whole Liu clan ascended to Heaven. Several thousand people from the village gazed up into the clouds to bid them farewell. During the Datong era of Emperor Wu of Liang, people built Kaiye Abbey on Liu Daocheng’s former residence. It was later renamed Zhaode Abbey and stood a little over a hundred paces from the county seat.

When Bai Yuchan visited Zhaode Abbey, he wrote a poem praising the local immortal. It says: “I have seen this immortal of our village; this is no exaggeration. His face looks as if refined from jade, radiant with brilliant light. His home has now become a celestial library; in the past, it was the place where dogs and chickens rose into the clouds. For thirty-seven years, his resolve has been as firm as iron; through countless affairs, he has remained clear-sighted and unconfused. Now he is gradually growing weary of social calls, and each day hears only twice the sound of bees announcing the hour.”

Xiang Mandu

Xiang Mandu was from Puban in Hedong. He went into the mountains in search of immortality, then returned home after ten years. When his family asked why he had come back, he said, “I devoted myself to cultivation in the mountains for three years. An immortal came to meet me, and we ascended to Heaven together on a dragon. After a long time, I looked down at the ground and saw only a dim, shadowy expanse. Above me there was no visible end, and the earth lay immeasurably far below. The dragon flew swiftly, its head and tail pitching up and down. As I sat on its back, I felt alarmed and afraid.

“When we reached Heaven, the first things I saw were golden beds and jade tables in the Purple Palace, the dwelling place of immortals in Daoist belief. Their brilliance dazzled the eye; it was truly a place of great nobility. The immortal gave me only one cup of Flowing Rosy Clouds, a legendary celestial wine. I suddenly forgot the proper etiquette of my household and behaved improperly before the celestial beings. I was reprimanded and had no choice but to return to the human world. Since then I have reflected on myself even more. It seems that only by doing so might I have the chance to go there again.

“Long ago, when Liu An, the Prince of Huainan, paid a visit to the Great Pure Immortal Elder, he was punished with three years of guarding the celestial latrine because he sat and rose without due respect. How can anyone who studies the Dao afford to be careless?”

In the Hedong region, Xiang Mandu was therefore called the “reprimanded immortal”—one who had been sent back from the realm of immortals.

Xu Qixuan

The Daoist Xu Qixuan lived on Mount Zhongnan during the Yuanjia era of Emperor Wen of Song. His virtue and Daoist arts were highly esteemed, and people held him in great respect. He was skilled in magical arts, which enabled him to foresee good and ill fortune and to know about events from previous lives.

Long ago, this account began and has been passed down to the present day. There was once a physician named Wang who had only one daughter. She had just reached the age of fifteen, when girls in ancient times underwent the coming-of-age ceremony. She was exceptionally beautiful, and Physician Wang doted on her. He named her Jinying.

One day, Xu Qixuan, a Daoist from Mount Zhongnan, was wandering about when he passed Physician Wang’s home. He saw a powerful aura of grievance from an enmity formed in a previous life hanging over the residence and rising straight into the sky. He asked the gatekeeper, “Is Physician Wang at home?” The gatekeeper replied, “Yes.” Xu Qixuan said, “Please tell him that Xu Qixuan, a Daoist from Mount Zhongnan, wishes to see him on an urgent matter.”

When Physician Wang heard this, he came out at once. Xu Qixuan said, “There is no need to hurry to greet me. I have something to ask you about, if you are willing to hear it.” Physician Wang replied, “Please go ahead.” Xu Qixuan said, “I just saw that a grave enmity from a previous life hangs over your home, waiting for a chance to take revenge. Do you know about it?” Physician Wang said, “Without you, Master, no one could know. How could an ordinary person like me make sense of such a thing?”

Xu Qixuan asked Physician Wang to bring out all the male and female servants so he could examine them one by one. They all said it was not them. Xu Qixuan asked again, “Who else is in the household?” Physician Wang said, “I have a young daughter, whose childhood name is Jinying. I have always doted on her.” He felt somewhat embarrassed as he spoke. Xu Qixuan said, “It is this young lady. She is the one with whom you have a grievance. Please have her come out.”

Physician Wang thought this sounded absurd, but asked his wife to call their daughter. When his wife reached the girl’s room, she found the door shut. Jinying was sitting facing the wall, sighing: “The enmity between him and me from our previous lives has not yet been settled. I was waiting for a chance to take revenge, but I did not expect the Daoist to expose who I am.”

Her mother was astonished and hurried to tell Physician Wang. He was thrown into confusion and did not know what to do. He bowed to Xu Qixuan and asked, “When enemies bound by a grievance from a previous life meet, how can it be resolved?” Xu Qixuan replied, “This is a small matter.” Physician Wang pleaded, “If you would mercifully save us, Master, I will never forget your kindness, whether in life or death.” He bowed again.

Xu Qixuan said, “There is no need to say more. I will drive her out now.” He fetched a sword and a bowl of water, then held the sword and sprinkled water over it. He followed Physician Wang to the inner room and had someone open the door. Jinying said, “This is an enmity between him and me. What does it have to do with you?” Xu Qixuan said, “The Daoist tradition regards helping others find release as a merit, and saving people as its highest purpose. Quickly return to your original form and do not remain here any longer.” After reciting the incantation, he had someone prepare a coffin. A short while later, Xu Qixuan opened the door to look inside and saw that Jinying had turned into a pile of white bones.

(Continuing the preceding account.) Qi Xuan told his attendants to collect the bones, place them on a funeral cart, and warned them: “Take the cart out through the capital’s gate and travel a little over ten li. You will come to a large forest. Leave the cart there, then hurry away at once. Do not, under any circumstances, look back.” The attendants followed his instructions. They took the cart out of the capital and traveled about ten li, where they indeed found a large forest. They left the cart there and rushed back. Only after reaching the capital gate did they turn to look. They saw red flames from the forest turning half the sky scarlet; the entire forest had burned to ashes. The official and his wife were astonished and wept. They bowed to thank Qi Xuan and prepared jewels, money, and silk as a reward. He paid no attention to any of it and went on his way.

Next is the biography of Wan Zhen.

The Celestial Master Wan, whose personal name was Zhen and courtesy name was Changsheng, came from Nanchang in Hongzhou, in what is now the region of Jiangxi. He had attained the Way of Long Life and Lasting Vision, a method of cultivation that enabled people to live long without growing old. He was active during the Southern Qi and Liang dynasties, and no one knew his age. He used Fulu and incantations—talismans drawn on paper and words recited aloud—to help people and cure their ailments, with swift results. People of the time regarded him as a figure like Jingyang—that is, Xu Xun, who had once served as magistrate of Jingyang and was revered as an immortal in Jiangxi folk tradition—or Luan Ba, a Han dynasty Daoist adept renowned for his magical arts. When Emperor Wen of Sui heard of his reputation, he held him in great esteem and issued an edict to build him a retreat on Hongya Mountain. This was the present-day Qizhen Abbey. In the fifteenth year of the Zhenguan era under Emperor Taizong of Tang, the prefect Zhou Xun requested that a Taiyi Abbey be built at the former residence of Mei Fu, the Han dynasty recluse who became an immortal. He then formally invited Celestial Master Wan to live there. This is the present-day Tianning Wanshou Abbey.

Earlier, a fisherman had pulled up a green stone seven chi long. When struck, it gave off a musical sound, and the commandery presented it to the imperial court. Emperor Gaozong of Tang ordered it broken open and found two swords inside. The sword guards, between blade and hilt, were engraved with Celestial Master Wan’s name. Gaozong found this wondrous. In the second year of the Xianqing era, he summoned Wan Zhen to Guangyao Hall and asked him about the principles of governing the state and cultivating life. Wan Zhen replied: “Have no thoughts and take no action; let quietude and purity serve as the standard for all under Heaven. Governing the state is like cultivating oneself.” Gaozong respected him and treated him as both teacher and friend, but Wan Zhen declined every gift he was offered. In the first year of the Longshuo era, he underwent corpse liberation in the capital, the Daoist transformation in which a cultivator leaves behind the body and becomes an immortal. Several days later, when the coffin was opened, only a sword and a staff remained inside. The emperor ordered the sword and staff placed in a bronze casket and buried beside Tianbao Cave on Xishan Mountain. This is the present-day Dongyang Abbey. The stele commemorating Celestial Master Wan’s virtue and achievements was composed by Li Yuanying, Prince of Teng, of the Tang dynasty, and erected at Kaiyuan Abbey.

Next is the biography of Cao Dexiu.

Cao Dexiu said that he had come from Qingyu Mountain in the Eastern Sea and had traveled to Jiangxi. People had seen him for more than thirty years, yet his appearance had never changed. He often went among the people, and whenever someone fell ill, he treated them with talismans and medicines; everyone recovered. In one household, a daughter in her twenties was about to be betrothed when she suddenly became possessed and tormented by an evil spirit. Every kind of treatment was tried, but her condition only grew worse.

The father went to visit Dexiu and described his daughter’s illness in detail. Dexiu asked, “Is there a mountain stream near your home? Does it have a deep pool or cave?” The father said that it did. Dexiu continued, “When your daughter was strolling by the stream in spring, a jiao caught sight of her. It has already drawn her hun and po souls into the pool. Take one of my talismans and cast it into the water.”

Soon after the talisman was thrown in, the pool suddenly churned, and a thunderclap-like sound came from the water. Moments later, a monster rose to the surface. It was over two zhang long, shaped like a black snake, with a head as large as a ladle. Its head had split open, it was bleeding, and it was dead. When the father returned home, he found his daughter clear-minded and fully recovered. He brought gifts to thank Dexiu, but Dexiu said, “I only meant to treat someone’s illness. Why should I accept gifts for that?” He firmly refused them.

Dexiu often told people, “If someone in your family falls ill, there is no need to bring gifts and ask me for talismans or medicine. Just prepare a platter of raw fish made from river fish and a pot of good wine to host me. Tell me what is wrong, and the illness will naturally be cured.” The people of the region followed his instructions, and they always proved effective. Everyone therefore regarded him as an immortal.

Later, Dexiu suddenly told the people, “I am leaving this place for the Western Mountain Heavenly Treasure Realm, an immortal land mentioned in the text. But next spring there will be a severe cattle plague. I will leave you a written talisman bearing my name for you to copy. When the plague comes, host me with raw fish, write out the talisman, and paste it on the cattle’s horns. The cattle will then be safe.” Later, a widespread cattle plague did indeed break out. In one village, the cattle bearing the talisman were spared, while all those without it died. The people missed Dexiu, and never saw him again.

Wang Yuanzhi’s biography says that Cao Dexiu once served as Grand Historian of the Jin dynasty, later became a Gentleman of the Secretariat under the Later Liang, and attained the Way of longevity.

Du Tanyong

Du Tanyong, whose courtesy name was Yuanlao, is also said to have used “Yuanlao” as his Daoist name. He came from the Jingzhao region, among the Three Regions around the capital. The Du family had served as officials for generations. Later, they moved south and settled in Qiantang County, Wu Commandery. As an adult, Du Tanyong entered official service and became Left Attendant Gentleman in the state of the Grand Marshal, Prince of Yuzhang. The Attendant Gentleman Xiao Ziyun was a former official of the Southern Qi. Though he appeared to study the Confucian classics diligently, inwardly he practiced Daoist arts.

When the Qi dynasty gave way to the Liang, Du Tanyong sighed with regret. He felt that serving as an official through writing and attaching himself to the powerful was like being bound. So he left the glittering world of officialdom, put his clothes in order, and traveled far afield, visiting Mount Min, Mount Long, Lintao, and Mount Emei. He later returned to his old mountain. After more than two years, he went to Mount Gouqu to seek the Dao and pursue the Real. He devoted himself to practicing Daoist methods and was humble and reserved; no one knew exactly what he practiced. In the tenth year of Tianjian under Emperor Wu of Liang…

In the second year, which fell in a Jiazi year, he set down his walking stick and left the valley. From Qiantang, he took a light boat south with his family to Mount Yusi in Luling Commandery, in what is now the Jiangxi area. There he rebuilt the Qingxu Abbey as his residence. At the time, the mountain was thickly forested, dark and secluded, and far from any village; it seemed a place where tigers and leopards might roam. Yet he settled there without hesitation. In time, people who sought the Dao gradually came to offer their labor and help complete the Daoist abbey. From then on, disciples arrived one after another to become his students and receive the Dao.

The following year, he entered the Grotto Heaven of Daxiu Fale, one of the blessed Grotto Heavens in Daoist tradition. He used the money he had brought with him to build dozens of rooms for living and lodging, rebuilt the palace, and personally composed a tall stone inscription describing the Grotto Heaven’s splendid scenery. He also acquired the fields in Qianying Valley to the west of the grotto, as well as those at Dalong, Nankeng, Dali, and Guayuan on the western side of the mountain beside the grotto, for the use of those cultivating the Dao and pursuing the Way. He also inscribed the title on the stone terrace at the Grotto Heaven; this, too, was in the year he entered it. When Emperor Wu heard of his reputation, he bestowed on him the title “Master of the Golden Gate.”

Xiao Zhen also came by boat from Jiangnan with his family to become his student. He learned secret Daoist methods and personally composed a stone inscription praising Du Yuanlao’s Virtue. This took place in the seventh year of the Putong era under the Liang dynasty. Afterward, Master Du cultivated with his disciple, Qian, the secret method of the Nine Cauldrons’ Reverted Elixir inside the grotto. The numinous immortals descended many times, telling them that the time to attain immortality and ascend was near. When the elixir was complete, Master Du and Qian took it and ascended into the daylight from the summit of Tai Bai Peak, becoming especially renowned. It is said that Master Du’s family became terrestrial immortals and lived in seclusion in the rear grotto.

Xiao Ziyun

Xiao Ziyun, whose courtesy name was Jingmu, was a grandson of Emperor Gao of the Southern Qi and a son of Xiao Yi, Prince Wenxian of Yuzhang. He was also a descendant of Xiao He, the chancellor of the Han dynasty. He had fifteen brothers, and all sixteen were enfeoffed as commandery dukes. After Emperor Wu accepted the abdication and founded the Liang dynasty, Xiao Ziyun’s title was reduced to viscount in the early years of the Tianjian era, when he was twelve. At the age of twenty, he compiled more than a hundred scrolls of the Book of Jin and presented them to the court.

Xiao Ziyun loved Daoist arts from childhood, prized a quiet and detached life, and disliked holding office. Although he held prominent posts, he often spoke and laughed in private with unusual people. He served successively as assistant administrator of Danyang Commandery, then was soon promoted to Palace Attendant of the Yellow Gate and Left Chief of the Secretariat of the Minister over the Masses. He often traveled with his family to the famous mountains of Jiangnan. One day, he took a boat to visit Mount Yusi in Luling. When he first arrived at Qingxu Abbey, Du Yuanlao had already attained the Dao on Mount Yusi. The two had known each other in the Southern Qi, and when they met again, their friendship was as warm as before. Xiao Ziyun therefore became Du Yuanlao’s student. He often traveled among the Grotto Heavens and learned many secret Daoist methods. He personally composed and carved a stone inscription praising Du Yuanlao’s Virtue.

Later, Xiao Ziyun passed through a place southeast of Mount Yusi where mountain ranges stretch one after another and cliffs rise in layers. It is now called “Mount Xiao.” An altar and an elixir furnace were set up on the mountain for the cultivation of elixirs.

The traces left by the old residence are still there. Later, Emperor Wu of Liang, ruler of the Southern Liang dynasty, sent an imperial edict summoning him to court. He entrusted his household affairs to his son Te before setting out. At court, he was promoted to Attendant-in-Ordinary, a close aide to the emperor. Skilled in cursive and clerical script, he was held in high regard by people of his time. His son Te was also a skilled calligrapher and rose to become a Gentleman of the Heir Apparent’s Household, an official in the Eastern Palace, but he died before his father.

In the first year of the Taiqing era (547), Hou Jing rebelled and recruited and captured court officials. Hou Jing admired his bearing and manner, finding his appearance extraordinary. Though already over sixty, he still possessed striking vitality. Fearing that disaster would befall him, he hurried back to Xiaoshan. Later, he moved to Qingxu. Five years afterward, a divine being suddenly appeared and told him, “Northeast of the Daoist temple is a hollow overgrown with trees, with water flowing in from the east. You can live there for a long time.” He moved his household once more and settled there.

After living there for twenty-four years, one day the Lord on High bestowed a jade register upon him, appointing him Chief Administrator of Yuanzhou and ordering him to oversee the records of the Blessed Court of the Overgrown Hollow. “Blessed Court” refers to an immortal abode where the divine beings dwell. He withdrew from the world with eighty-two members of his household, and from then on people never saw them again. His story was also shrouded in secrecy, and few knew of it. Later, people who entered the cave would often see the house where he had lived; yet if they deliberately searched for it, they could not find it.

Ding Xuanzhen

Master Ding was named Xuanzhen, with the courtesy name Zhongcheng, and was from Xunyang. By nature, he was cautious and quick-witted. He strictly observed the precepts and was respected in his community. He once met a man living in the wilds and learned from him the essentials of magical arts. These arts were subtle and powerful: they could command ghosts and spirits, and worked unfailingly as intended.

He regarded Kangwang Valley as a place of exceptional spiritual beauty. At the valley entrance stood a temple to the Bronze Horse. According to legend, Wang Mang of the Han dynasty had once had a bronze horse cast. As time passed, a demon attached itself to the horse and caused calamities, devouring the people’s livestock and crops. The residents could no longer endure the trouble, so they built a temple and offered sacrifices to it.

Xuanzhen despised this practice, so he destroyed the temple and set up a marker bearing the character “Zhen” on the site. He then sent the bronze horse to the South River. Before he had returned, however, the horse was back in its original place. Xuanzhen then cut off its left foot. At once, the bronze horse turned into a human figure and wept, saying, “I hope you will give me a place where I can eat.” Xuanzhen moved its shrine to the west side of the stream and promised that it would no longer cause harm.

There was also once a pool of poisonous dragons there. Whenever the weather turned dark with wind and rain, two dragons would suddenly emerge and play with a pearl, whose light gleamed brightly. Xuanzhen rebuked them, seized the pearl, and placed it inside the temple hall. The dragons entered the hall to retrieve it, but could not reach it, and spat saliva all over the floor. Afterward, two dragons painted by Zhang Sengyou, a painter of the Southern Dynasties, appeared on the pillars of the hall. They immediately fought the poisonous dragons. A storm broke out, and their roars shook the heavens; even the eaves and beams were swept down. Xuanzhen then wrote…

After the iron talisman melted in the fire, people sank an iron bell in the pool. The dragon in the pool then fled westward through the mountain, but later returned. So people drove iron nails into the pillars of the hall and painted eyes on the dragon. Only then did the disasters finally subside. Once the spirits and monsters had been driven from the area, it began to become a blessed land. This took place in the tenth year of Emperor Wen’s Kaihuang era, under the Sui dynasty. The governor of Jiangzhou wrote an account of the events and submitted it to the court. Emperor Wen found the story extraordinary, issued an edict commending the place, and ordered the officials of the prefecture and commanderies to treat it with due respect.

In the third year of Emperor Yang’s Daye era, Xuanzhen passed away. That night, a streak of white light crossed the sky to the southeast. Xuanzhen was seventy-eight years old when he died.

Zhang Gongbi

There was a Daoist master surnamed Liu whose given name is no longer known. During the Zhenguan era of Emperor Taizong of the Tang, he lived at Yuntai Abbey in Huayin, practicing Qigong and abstaining from grain for twenty years. At each Three Origins fast—the Daoist purification observance held on the days of the Upper, Middle, and Lower Origins—there was always a man wearing loose-sleeved clothing, with an ugly appearance and a dark complexion, seated at the last place. When the fast ended, he would leave without a word. This went on for more than ten years, and the man’s clothing and appearance never changed.

Curious, Master Liu asked him about it. The man replied, “My surname is Zhang, and my name is Gongbi. I live at the northeast corner of Lotus Peak.” Master Liu thought that no one seemed to live there, and suggested they go together to see the place. Gongbi agreed. “It is very peaceful there. If you wish to stay, Master, there is nothing to prevent you.” Master Liu then arranged to go with him.

They walked more than twenty li, climbing by grasping vines and creepers, before finding a path so narrow that only birds and beasts could pass. The cliffs and deep ravines were steep and perilous, and even monkeys could scarcely make their way through. Gongbi, however, walked as if on level ground. Following him, Master Liu felt neither difficulty nor fatigue.

They came to a stone wall more than a thousand ren high. Beneath it lay a ravine with no visible bottom, and a path only a few inches wide, where they could stand only with their feet turned sideways. Gongbi tapped the stone wall with his fingers. Someone inside called, “Who is there?” After Gongbi answered, a doorway suddenly opened in the wall, revealing the whole world within. Gongbi was about to take Master Liu inside, but the person there angrily reproached him: “Why have you brought an outsider?” Then the door shut, and the wall returned to its original appearance.

Gongbi said, “He is no outsider. He is Master Liu of Yuntai Abbey, an old friend of mine, and that is why I brought him here.” Only then did the stone door open again and let them in. Gongbi said, “The master has come. You can prepare something to eat.” The person inside asked whether Master Liu intended to stay. Master Liu said he wanted to decide later.

The person then brought a bowl of water, mixed into it a little powder from the blue pouch carried at his elbow, and had Master Liu drink it. The water tasted sweet and fragrant. Gongbi said, “I told you before, the mountains are very…”

Why don’t you put on a little display for the Daoist master to see, Le Jun? The man then filled his mouth with water and sprayed it toward the valley to the east. In an instant, a pair of azure dragons and a pair of white elephants appeared in the valley, dancing with exquisite grace. A pair of vermilion phoenixes and a pair of blue luan birds, legendary spirit birds, also appeared and sang in clear, bright voices. Gong Bi took leave of the master, went out, and walked several dozen paces before turning back. All he saw were enormous cliffs and deep ravines. When they neared the Daoist temple, Gong Bi said farewell and departed. The master returned and settled in, then went to visit Gong Bi again. But he found every step treacherous and difficult, and could not go any farther. After that, Gong Bi never came again.

Li Yuanji

Li Yuanji lived in the early years of the Wude era under Emperor Gaozu of Tang. He dwelt in seclusion on Mount Ge and possessed Daoist arts. He could sit motionless and then suddenly vanish; no one could fathom him. He often traveled from place to place, using Fulu (talismans and registers) and medicines to help people. He once removed a bone lodged in a tiger’s throat, treated a magpie with acupuncture, and revived many fish and turtles. He traveled by day and spent the night sleeping outdoors in the grass. Near the end of Emperor Daizong’s reign, he planted pine and cypress trees in Jianchang County, then ascended bodily into the heavens. Later, someone gathering herbs on Mount Ge saw Yuanji riding a blue deer, moving as swiftly as a flying thing. When asked about him, he did not reply, and no one knew where he went.

Chen Daochong

The Daoist master’s surname was Chen and his personal name was Daochong. He was from Xunyang. While his mother was pregnant, she dreamed that a celestial immortal entered the house. When he was born, his appearance was extraordinary. As a child, he neither drank alcohol nor ate meat, and whenever he heard people discuss the scriptures and the Dao, he listened intently. When grown, he observed the precepts with great purity. He received Fulu, credentials of initiation for Daoist priests, from an extraordinary person, and then built a thatched retreat on another peak of Mount Zixiao, a place of exceptional beauty.

He had eight or nine disciples, all strict in observing the precepts and well educated. His door was kept firmly closed, and he did not admit visitors casually. In those days, anyone granted an audience with him was said to have “passed through the Dragon Gate,” just as people in the Han dynasty called an audience with Li Ying passing through the Dragon Gate. Daochong deeply loved the Laozi and Zhuangzi. He did not merely recite their words but thoroughly grasped their meaning. He once said, “Daoism originally took Laozi and Zhuangzi as its masters, and their original intention was to awaken to one’s nature. That is why their books often say, ‘Nothing is better than seeing with clarity’”—a phrase from the Zhuangzi meaning to perceive things with a clear mind. “This is the essential point. Later generations know only how to study techniques and cling to outward forms, straying far from the original intention.” He taught his disciples morning and evening, and wrote a treatise that has been handed down.

In the spring of the twenty-first year of the Zhenguan era under Emperor Taizong of Tang, he suddenly said to his disciples, “I want to visit a famous mountain.” They tried to dissuade him because of his age, but Daochong insisted on going. On the way, he died at noon—“transforming” (jiehua), the term for a Daoist priest’s death. He was 114 years old. His disciples approached to examine his face.

There was a man named Wang Shouyi. Early in the Zhenguan era of Emperor Taizong of the Tang, he appeared in Luoyang, claiming to be Wang Buyi, a mountain recluse from Zhongnan. He sold medicine in the city’s markets. The wealthy Liu Xin had an only son, who developed a fleshy growth above his eyebrow. Wang Buyi took a pill from his medicine gourd and gave it to him. In an instant, the growth burst open, and a small snake crawled out, its body mottled with five brilliant colors. Before long, the snake gradually grew to about one zhang in length. Wang Buyi shouted at it, and it leapt up; clouds and mist immediately spread, darkening the sky. Riding the snake, Wang Buyi soared into the air and flew away.

(Fragment at the beginning: His body remained soft, and when they lifted the coffin, it seemed to have no weight. People therefore believed that he had become an immortal and departed.)